Acclimating to Normalcy
by WannaBeBella13
Summary: Bella goes to Edward's meadow in New Moon but what she finds there was completely different than what she expected. She finds Alice, Jasper and Carlisle..human How is this possible? and what happened to the others? Bella/Carlisle


**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight.. :'(**

**A/N: This is a response to the challenge Relapse by Kimkirk on the TWCS Library.**

**Challenge: **

The reason the Cullens actually left in New Moon was due to a threat in the Vampire World, which causes vampires to become human, but in the state they were just before they were turned (e.g. Edward is a human about to die from the Spanish Influenza, but Carlisle is an otherwise healthy human).

It is up to you whether or not Bella was informed of this threat.

The only survivors of this threat (out of the Cullen Coven) are Carlisle, Jasper and Alice.

It is up to you how widespread this vampires-becoming-human threat is (who else survived / died / was affected)

It is up to you as to the nature of the threat (a vampire-affecting disease, a particular vampire's gift etc).

Alice's mental state is questionable (can her human brain handle her gift?).

It is up to you how to handle Jasper's gift in his human state.

Bella assists the vampires to acclimate to being human again.

Preferred pairing either Bella/Carlisle or Bella/Jasper.

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**Chapter 1  
Carlisle's POV**

I was walking through the forest shouting out Alice's name and listening out for any sign of her. This was so much more difficult now that I rely on oxygen and get tired so easily. Jasper and I have been searching for hours now. It was all so strange still. I was just starting to learn how to be human again after being a vampire for so long. It was disorienting.

"Alice!" Where was she? I couldn't believe Jasper and I let her get away again. We know we need to watch her. Then I heard a scream ring out,  
"Bella!" I ran towards Alice's voice. She had been screaming about Bella the past few days. I was starting to worry about Bella, was she alright? I knew Edward's leaving had to have had an affect on her. I just hope she wasn't doing anything  
reckless, but with the way Alice was screaming, I thought otherwise. Then I burst through the trees into the meadow, where Jasper and I agreed to meet at, Edward's meadow, oh my son...why did he insist on being alone? We could've been there for him. Then I saw Alice thrashing and Bella holding her, trying to still her movements. Bella! What was she doing here?  
"Alice! Bella!" I extracted Alice out of Bella's arms and tried to keep her from thrashing about so she wouldn't hurt herself. That was easier said than done as I didn't have my former strength.  
"Bella's gonna die! Bella! Don't go, Bella! Your gonna die!" She kept shrieking that over and over again.  
"Carlisle? What's going on? Why is Alice so warm? Why...why are your  
eyes blue? What is going on here?" She shook her head.  
"This just doesn't make any sense..." She seemed so stressed and confused. She had lost weight, I could tell even with my weak human eyes, and her hair was lank, but she was still beautiful.  
"Bella, I-" Alice thrashed trying to escape and I tightened my grip on her hoping I wasn't hurting her. "know you need answers," I continued. "and you deserve them, just let me calm down Alice." I said haltingly still trying to restrain Alice. She looked up at me nodded, and proceeded to arrange herself into a more comfortable position.  
"Do you need help?" She asked me. I shook my head. I started speaking to Alice in a low voice,  
"Alice, sweetheart Bella is right here. She's going to be fine. Nothing is going to happen to her, I won't let it." Her thrashing slowed.  
"Bella's gonna be ok..." Alice said slowly and promptly passed out in my arms. As soon as that happened Bella let loose with the questions, albeit in a low voice.  
"What was that? Is Alice ok? How is she sleeping? I thought that wasn't possible!" I sighed.  
"That was one of her fits. Alice will be fine. As for Alice sleeping..Well, Bella that  
is a very long story." She rolled her eyes and I smirked a little at the childish gesture.  
"Well, Carlisle. I have no where better to be, and I'm pretty sure you don't eithier, so get talking." I almost laughed but this wasn't the time or place for that.  
"Bella, Edward didn't leave you because he didn't want you. He left because we were turning human." That at least was part of the truth.  
"What?" She exclaimed and stood hurriedly, shocked at my admission.  
"Bella please let me finish." I asked, I wanted her to hear the whole story before reacting.  
"Oh I'm sorry Carlisle." she said blushing red and sitting back down on the grass.  
"Go ahead. It's just that this is a lot to process. Especially after all that happened today." Something told me that what happened today wasn't good.

"What else happened today, Bella?" She looked down and mumbled something incomprehensible to me.  
"What was that Bella?" This time she said a little clearer,  
"I was attacked, well not exactly attacked..." My mind had latched onto the word 'attacked' and  
questions immediately started forming in my mind. Who...or what? When? Was it just now? or earlier? What had happened? Was she ok? The doctor in me took over and I immediately gave her a once over. She looked no worse for the wear, a little too skinny, a few bruises but that could be from falling while hiking here.  
"What happened,Bella?" I asked in the calmest voice I could muster trying to hide all the turmoil that was taking place in my mind. The she told me how Laurent - my fists clenched just at the thought of his name – came to the meadow when she was there saying he was going to feed off her, because he was oh too thirsty to resist. Then the mysterious wolves that saved her...I would have to look into that.

"Ok, Carlisle. I told you what happened. Now tell me what's going on!" I had to...I couldn't stall any longer.  
"On your birthday after you and Edward," she flinched at his name. "left the house, something horrible happened to Emmett. cuts and gashes started appearing all over Emmett's body. His skin was becoming softer, his senses dulling, his thirst raging. We couldn't understand what was going on. I tried to save him in every way I knew how, but even my efforts couldn't save him. He died from the exact same wounds that the bear attack had given him all those years ago, when Rosalie found him." Bella looked at me her eyes wide with shock.  
"No..." I nodded and placed Alice down on the grass gently so I could hug Bella. She sobbed quietly into my shirt. Then, she pulled away,

"Carlisle...your warm too...I like it." I smiled, trying not to let her know how much that pleased me.  
"Not done with the story yet, Bella."  
"There's more?" I nodded grimly and she extricated herself out of my arms, I tried not to sigh.  
"Right, sorry." I continued with the story,  
"Less than 24 hours later, the same thing started happening to Rosalie. We knew what was happening this time and we were better prepared, but to no avail, Rosalie died as well." She shook her head.  
"I know you don't know Rosalie's story so I'll let you know what happened to her. She would've wanted you to know.  
"Ok."  
"Rosalie lived during the Great Depression. She was engaged to marry wealthy man, Royce King II. One night while walking home after visiting her friend Vera, Royce and some of his friends, raped, beat her, and left her for dead." Bella gasped, her hands flying up to her face, in shock.  
"That's how I found her."  
"Is-is-is that why she was so mean?" She asked, stuttering, it was kind of adorable.  
"Partially." I conceded.  
"And the other reason?"  
"She was jealous." She looked at me skeptically.  
"Of what?" Of what? Couldn't she see? She was beautiful...and she had Edward who barely gave any girl a second glance, but somehow she managed to capture his heart.  
"You had Edward...Edward wanted you." Bella looked at me in confusion.  
"Oh she had Emmett. But she was so used to every man wanting her that when Edward didn't even spare her a second glance it came as a nasty surprise to her. Then when a human, a mere human, her words not mine, captured his heart-" She scoffed at that but I knew it was true. During all the years I had been with Edward, I had never seen him as happy as when he was with her. He had left only to protect her. "she was in complete disbelief. Not to mention you had the one thing she didn't."  
"And what would what that be?"  
"Humanity. You can grow old, have children, have a normal life. The only things she didn't have." Realization dawned on her.  
"Oh..." I nodded.  
"Yes, Bella, that's why." Then her eyes widened,  
"How did I forget? Edward? What happened to Edward, Carlisle?" I shook my head. I knew I had to tell her but i wanted to spare her this pain.  
"Bella, I'm so sorry, Edward died...of the Influenza." I had barely gotten the word 'died' out before Bella fainted dead away. I had to move extremely quickly - for a human - in order to catch her before she hit the grass. Then Jasper entered the meadow. Only having eyes for Alice he ran over to her, and picked her up off the ground, breathing hard after the long run.  
"Carlisle, is that Bella?" I nodded, cradling her unconscious form close to my chest.  
"What is she doing here?"  
"I really don't know...but we really need to keep a better watch over Alice." We couldn't keep roaming the forest searching for her after she'd run off because of our carelessness...again.  
"Yes, I've been thinking about that. Maybe we could sleeping shifts. That way one of us will always be able to keep an eye on Alice."  
"That sounds like a good idea to me." It made a lot of sense. It also made me wonder why we hadn't thought of this earlier. He nodded.  
"Then that's we should do." He said, stiff. It made me worry.  
"Are you ok, Jasper?" I know he had been feeling off ever since he turned back, especially due to the loss of his gift. he had lived in an emotional climate for almost 150 years and to have it disappear so quickly must be disconcerting for him. Even now, when we've been human for months.  
"I'll be alright, Carlisle." he replied looking at me with empty eyes.  
"Don't worry about me. You have a beauty in your arms to worry about." I instinctively tugged Bella closer to me and my jaw dropped,  
"What are you talking about?" He smirked and winked at me with a light in his eyes that I hadn't seen for months.  
"Oh you'll figure it out one of these days.."  
Then my attention was brought to Bella as she started to stir.

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A/N: I hope you liked it! While I really like the idea that the challenge Relapse by Kimkirk presented me. I have many things on my plate and this story i'm sorry to say will be pushed to the backburner. Idk when i'll be able to update again but I will! I will not abandon this story I have many amazing plans for it. Anyway please review! :)


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